HORSES' COLLARS (1935) -- ThreeStooges.net

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Released January 10, 1935
Featuring Moe, Larry and Curly

Columbia
18.2 min. (Short Subject)

The Stooges are hired by the Detective Hadyn Zeke to go out West and help his client, Nell Higginbottom regain the I.O.U. her father was tricked into signing. The boys get into several scrapes in the process, but fortunately Curly goes insane whenever he sees a mouse, and only a mouthful of cheese will settle him down... "Moe, Larry ... the cheese!"

This was the first of 17 Stooges westerns.

Opening title music is "At the Races," by Louis Silvers; see The Three Stooges Journal # 87 (Fall 1998).

Avg. Rating:

[9.06/10]

Cast List

Jerry Howard
Curly

Moe Howard
Moe

Larry Fine
Larry

Fred Kelsey
Detective Hyden Zeke

Alice Belcher
Mrs. Zeke

Fred Kohler
Double Deal Decker

Dorothy Kent
Nell Higginbottom

Leo Willis
Lobo

Sam Lufkin
1st cowboy shot by Decker

Slim Whitaker
2nd cowboy shot by Decker

Nelson McDowell
Bartender

Milton Douglas
Waiter

Bobby Callahan
Drunk

Jack Hill
Saloon sax musician

Bud McClure
Sheriff

George Chesebro
Cowboy sat on by fat girl

Hilda Title
Curly's dance partner

Alice Dahl
Moe's dance partner

June Gittelson
Fat dancer with Larry

Allyn Drake
Dance hall girl

Nancy Caswell
Dance hall girl

Bobby Dunn
Cowboy on dance floor

Ralph ''Buck'' Bucko
Cowboy in saloon

Roy Bucko
Cowboy in saloon

Arthur 'Pat' West
Cowboy in saloon

Bert Young
Curly's double

Johnny Kascier
Moe's double

Ed Brandenburg
Larry's double

Unidentified HORSES' COLLARS 1
Saloon girl

Unidentified HORSES' COLLARS 2
Piano player

Unidentified HORSES' COLLARS 3
Dancefloor

Unidentified HORSES' COLLARS 4
Lynchers

Production Crew

Clyde Bruckman
Director

Jules White
Producer

Felix Adler
Story and Screenplay

John Boyle
Photography

James Sweeney
Film Editor

Louis Silvers
Music

Charles Rosoff
Music

Constantin Bakaleinikoff
Music

J. H. Wood
Music

Stooge Businesses (2)

Stooge Goofs (13)

Bottle Location
When Curly asks for the bottle, the bartender places the bottle next to Curly, but in the next shot, it's suddenly next to Moe.

Crew Member's Hand Seen
When Larry tosses up the $5 gold piece, a crew member's hand can be seen at the far top right of the screen tossing up the change.

Curly's Open Shirt
When Moe asks Decker "Got a $5 gold piece?, Curly's shirt is unbuttoned, but it's buttoned suddenly in the next shot.

Echo
After Decker says "Thieves, huh?, you can hear an echo of that line.

Gentleman Cut
There is a noticeable cut in the film when Nell announces the Stooges as "Gentleman." Moe looks to his left and starts to acknowledge Curly, then there is a cut and Moe is glanced to his right. Perhaps there was a forgotten line or the cameraman forgot to stop the filming.

Missing Part
When the ropes that Moe and Larry are tied to break, in the background you can see Decker unconscious with a drum busted over his head, yet they never showed how that happened.

Mysterious Black Eye
During Curly's first wild "Moe, Larry, the Cheese! outburst, he pushes Hyden Zeke's back into the wall, knocking him unconscious. Then a minute later when Zeke comes back to, he has a black eye, but Curly didn't even hit him in the eye.

No explanation
When the Stooges bow down to Nell, Moe bops Curly on the head, then all of a sudden, it cuts to Larry holding his face in disgust as Moe glares at him with a mean face as if he hit Larry, yet they didn't show it.

Number Changing Back and Forth
After Decker shoots two people who won't pay for their drinks, the bartender goes to a chalk board that says "Decker: 115 - Opponents: 0, then he erases the "5 in "115 and puts in a "7, making it "117. However, a while later in the film when the Stooges ask the bartender for drink, the camera shows a close-up of the bartender and behind him, you can see the chalkboard and the number is suddenly back to "115.

Real Eyepoke
When Moe says "Take it easy, Butterfingers! and pokes Curly in the eyes, it looks like he really hit Curly's eyes (as opposed to poking his eyebrows like it's normally done).

Standing Ovation?
As the boys arrive in the bar & stiff the bartender for their drinks, Decker is seen to stand up to confront them. But as the camera angle changes, & although he already stood up once, Decker is seen to stand up again as the boys move farther away from the bar & he confronts them.

Switching Hands
When the Stooges are looking at the picture of the detective's wife, Curly has a pipe in his right hand, but in the next shot, it's in his left hand suddenly.

Visible Wires
You can see the wires holding Moe and Larry up as they're being hung by a rope.

Stooge Mayhem (Avg. 7.50)

Stooge Quotes (6)

Stooge Routines (7)

Coin-shooting
During a coin-shooting sequence, when somebody flips a coin in the air, a Stooge shoots it and it turns into a whole bunch of pennies.
Also used in: OUT WEST · PALS AND GALS
Goes Berserk After Hears/Sees/Smells Something
Curly or Curly-Joe goes bonkers every time he hears the song Pop Goes the Weasel and starts punching out everything within reach, and only stopping the music will settle him down ... OR ... Curly goes insane whenever he sees a mouse, and only a mouthful of cheese will settle him down ... OR ... Curly goes nuts whenever he smells "Wild Hyacinth" perfume and only tickling his feet will settle him down ... OR ... Curly goes crazy every time he sees a tassel, and only rubbing it on his chin will calm him down.
Also used in: PUNCH DRUNKS · GRIPS, GRUNTS, AND GROANS · TASSELS IN THE AIR · THE THREE STOOGES GO AROUND THE WORLD IN A DAZE
It's on the House
When the Stooges are asked by a waiter/bartender to pay for their drinks, they respond with "It's a tin roof" (or something similar.) The waiter gets confused and asks "What do you mean?", followed by the Stooges responding "It's a tin roof -- it's 'on the house'!"
Also used in: A MERRY MIX-UP · ROCKIN' IN THE ROCKIES
Painted-on eyelids
A Stooge has opened eyes painted on his eyelids while he's sleeping so it looks like he's awake.
Also used in: SLAPHAPPY SLEUTHS
Two men in one coat
A thug has has one arm in one arm of his coat and a Stooge has an arm in the other side. As another thug tries to beat up the Stooge in the process, the Stooge punches the thug, then spins around as the thug tries to punch him, causing the thug to accidentally punch the other thug caught in the coat. This goes on an on until the two thugs are eventually knocked out.
Also used in: CALLING ALL CURS · CRASH GOES THE HASH · SLAPHAPPY SLEUTHS
You see this heel?
When a Stooge is asked if he's a good detective, he responds "You this this heel? I ran that down!"
Also used in: SLAPHAPPY SLEUTHS
You'll never know...
The Stooges break out singing "You'll never know, just what tears are..."
Also used in: HALF SHOT SHOOTERS · A DUCKING THEY DID GO · SOUP TO NUTS · BEER AND PRETZELS · DANCING LADY · FUGITIVE LOVERS

Stooge Trivia (1)

Fan Reviews (8)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2021-05-07 08:25:14 by jaywigley

I had not realized that this one was the fifth official Stooges short, and I'm generally a big fan of the first twenty or thirty shorts completely, but it's odd that they were repeating the "something drives Curley crazy" bit that they had just used in Punch Drunks. . .and so much of this one relies on that one gag playing out again and again.

Reviewer's Rating:

(8)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2010-07-15 12:13:10 by Final Shemp

I'm not all that big a fan of westerns, but the Stooges will get me to watch anything. Horses' Collars is a really good short, and one worth watching more than once.Curly's nutty rage attacks whenever he sees a mouse ("His father was a rat!" explains Moe) highlight the entire short, as he often saves the day by taking on multiple thugs at once. The finale is in particular a big kick, when Curly gets caught up in a Decker's jacket and starts spinning in circles, trailing Decker with him.The dancing scene where the Stooges frisk everyone they bump into is a hoot, and who can forget the classic bar line "It's a Tin Roof! It's on the house!" There's a lot of fun to be had in Horses' Collars for all Stooge fans.Final Shemp's Final Word: 3 Pokes

Reviewer's Rating:

(8)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2010-05-07 21:59:05 by Bud_Jamison

Great atmosphere and performance by the boys, one of my all time favorites. Once owned 16mm print, wish I still had it!

Reviewer's Rating:

(10)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2010-04-01 14:08:11 by Gritto RhumBoogie

Great short- all the shorts when Curly goes nuts because of some trigger are great. 4 pokes.

Reviewer's Rating:

(10)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2002-01-02 02:57:00 by Stooge_Ben

Classic short. 4 pokes. Moe Larry the Cheese! ha it was great. One question.. what happened to the girl who played Nell? Why was she never in any other Stooge shorts?

Reviewer's Rating:

(10)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2001-11-15 19:16:00 by vidlisada

Another classic Stooges short! One of my favorites! So many great moments in this one!Hey, did anyone notice in the beginning of the short the bartender changes the number on the blackboard behind the bar to 117, then later when the Stooges are at the bar the number reads 115? Jump cut! :)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2001-09-25 15:52:00 by Shemp_Diesel

3 1/2 pokes for this western. Moe gets my vote for best line when he ganders a long look at the picture of Fred Kesley's wife. Which side is her face?

Reviewer's Rating:

(8)

Re: HORSES' COLLARS
Posted 2001-05-27 02:15:00 by Mike Holme

This short is one of my favorites because it was one of the first shorts I saw and I thought it was hilarious! I was laughing at almost every moment! Rating: **** Mike Holme

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Working Title(s):	HYDEN ZEEKE
Title Origin:	"Horse's asses."
Prod. No.:	159
Shooting Days:	4 days From: 1934-11-23 To: 1934-11-27

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